Is Unregulated Biohacking the Future of Science?
The $140 Mail-Order CRISPR Kit
"Are people dying and suffering needlessly because of all these committees and all these rules?" asks Josiah Zayner, a scientist, biohacker, and founder of the biotech company The Odin, which supplies low-cost CRISPR kits for the consumer market. "And what if people just say, 'F— you, I'm going to do it anyway'? And what if people start getting cured?"
CRISPR is a gene editing system that allows scientists to modify the DNA of organisms ranging from bacteria to plants and fungus to human beings. The Odin sells kits for the the modification of bacteria and yeast.
Reason TV visited Zayner in his garage lab to discuss the implications and ethics of bringing CRISPR to the masses, why he left a prestigious job in a NASA laboratory to start his own company, how regulation stifles scientific innovation, and why he believes that unregulated, decentralized experimentation will lead to the some the next great scientific breakthroughs.
Watch the full interview above, or click below for downloadable versions. Approximately 10 minutes. Produced by Zach Weissmueller. Camera by Alexis Garcia. Music by Kai Engel.